Centrifugal blowers or fans are commonly used for air handling in various industries, such as in automotive applications, residential and commercial ventilation systems, and numerous other applications which require forced air flow. In a typical centrifugal blower, for example, air is drawn into a blower wheel housing through an inlet aperture by rotating a blower wheel within the housing. The air is then forced around the housing and out an exhaust aperture.
Typical blower wheel housings are of sheet metal construction and are generally formed of two side plates and a curvilinear scroll positioned therebetween, wherein the side plates and scroll are spot-welded together. Typically, the blower wheel housing is mounted to a support structure or other apparatus, wherein the blower is generally incorporated into a larger apparatus or system. In a conventional blower, the blower wheel housing is mounted to the support structure or other apparatus via a supplemental flange which is attached to a periphery of the exhaust aperture, or by supplemental mounting brackets which are attached to a side of the blower wheel housing. The supplemental flange or mounting brackets are typically physically separate members which are attached to the blower wheel housing by spot welding or crimping the flange or brackets to the housing. Thus, the attachment of the flange or mounting brackets typically requires an additional process step in the manufacture of the centrifugal blower.
Furthermore, additional costs can be incurred in providing the supplemental flange or mounting brackets, wherein the flange or mounting brackets are typically formed in operations which are separate from the formation of the side plates. Thus, the process for attaching the supplemental flange or mounting brackets to the side plate can incur additional fixturing costs wherein additional fixturing equipment and/or labor and time is involved in placing the supplemental flange or mounting brackets in a fixture prior to spot welding. Still further, the physically separate supplemental flanges or mounting brackets may require additional storage space in the manufacturing facility prior to their attachment to the blower wheel housing.